Coil-forming device



Jam;v 11, 1968 y vH. E. HuLsENBn-:RG y 3,387,634

, COIL-FORMING DEVICE Filed Sept. 25, 1966 IWL/c P/afel/ Gam/2 #seri United States Patent O 3,387,634 COIL-FRMING DEVICE Hubert E. Hilsenherg, Apple Valley, Calif., assignor to General Dynamics Corporation, a corporation of Delaware Filed Sept. 23, 1966, Ser. No. 581,573 6 Claims. (Cl. 140-92.2)

This invention relates to forming devices, particularly to devices for forming articles from stranded material, and more particularly to a coil forming device capable of producing a born-to-shape coil.

Various types of forming devices are known in the art which function to form an end item from stranded material. These prior art forming devices are exemplified by U.S. Patents 2,613,039; 2,964,971, and 3,051,402.

In the forming of end items from stranded material, such as electrical coils, it has been the practice in the art to wind the wire on a mandrel and then shape the wound coil to the configuration desired, normally to a curved configuration to fit within an annular casing such as in electric motors, generators, etc. It has been found that this process puts undesired stress on certain areas of the coil, thus reducing eiciency and/or life of the coil.

This invention overcomes the disadvantages of the prior known coil forming process by providing a forming device which will form a coil, for example, in the desired end configuration, thus eliminating the problems created by the undesired stressing of the coil wires after it has been wound. With this invention, electrical coils, lfor example, can be formed in a born-to-shape manner.

Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide a new and improved device for forming objects from stranded material.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device which will form born-to-shape articles from stranded material.

Another object of the invention is to provide an apparatus for winding electrical coils which eliminatesvthe presently utilized procedure of forming the previously wound coil to a desired shape.

Another object of the invention is to provide a coil forming device for winding contour shaped coils.

Another object of the invention is to provide a coil forming device which utilizes a wobble plate mounted jig, the wobble plate having a cam surface and is driven against a cam roller, the jig having essentially the same configuration as the cam surface of the wobble plate.

Other objects of the invention will become readily apparent from the following description and accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. l is a view partially in cross section of an ernbodiment of the invention;

FIGS. 2 and 3 are views illustrating a portion of the FIG. l device in different positions during winding operations; and

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an electrical coil made by the FIG. 1 device.

Broadly, the embodiment of the invention illustrated relates to a device for winding a contour shaped coil. More particularly, the illustrated apparatus comprises a forming jig fabricated to a desired coil shape mounted on a spring loaded wobble plate having a cam machined to match the conliguration of the coil forming jig, whereby coil wire is fed to said jig as said wobble plate is rotated by a drive shaft via the spring and caused to wobble by said cam and a fixed cam roller.

Referring now to FIG. 1, the illustrated embodiment of the invention comprises a drive shaft adapted to be driven by suitable means such as an electrical motor or 3,387,634 Patented June 11, 1968 "ice conventional coil winding drive apparatus (not shown), a wobble plate 11, a cam 12, earn roller 13 mounted on a fixed roller mount 14, a spring 15 operatively interconnecting drive shaft 10 and wobble plate 11, and a coil forming jig 16. Wobble plate 11 is threadedly mounted on a swivel 17 via an adapted 18, swivel 1'6 being threadedly attached at one end thereof with the end of shaft 10. Cam 12 may be integral with wobble plate 11 or attached thereto by conventional means such as screws (not shown). Spring 15 is fxedly connected, such as by welding, at one end with a collar member 19 which is adjustably positioned on shaft 10 and retained thereon by set screw 20. The other end of spring 15 is provided with a bent portion 21 which is inserted into an aperture in wobble plate 11 as shown, and may be retained by welding, for example. It is thus seen that movement of collar 19 on drive shaft 10 serves to adjust the compression of spring 15.

The coil forming jig 1'6 includes an inner or base member 22, a mandrel 23 and an outer or cover member 24, base member 22 being integral with wobble plate 11 or attached thereto by suitable means such as screws. Mandrel 23 and outer member 24 are secured to base member 22 by a bolt 25 and washer 26, bolt 25 extending through member 24 and mandrel 23l and threaded into a threaded bore in base or inner member 22 as shown in phantom lines in FIG. l. Jig 16 in this embodiment is configured so as to produce the coil 27 (see FIG. 4). The jig 16 is configured so as to conform with the configuration of cam 12 and is physically attached thereto via Wobble plate 11, whereby rotation of said wobble plate by drive shaft 10 through spring 15 causes the cam to move against the cam roller 13 and produces rotary movement of jig 16 which conforms to the configuration of the surface of cam 12. Thus, for different configured end items, the cam 12 and jig 16 would be changed to produce such desired end configuration.

In operation, as shown in FIGS. 1-3, the coil 27 shown in FIG. 4 is wound from wire 2-8 from a supply 29 and supported and directed by roller mechanism indicated at 30. As shown in FIG. l, the wire 28 is wound around mandrel 23 of jig 16y as wobble plate 11 is rotated about the cam surface by drive shaft 10. As the jig 16 is rotated by wobble plate 11, the mandrel 23 is rotated from point A to point B while the wobble plate is moved from the high surface area of cam 12 to the low surface area of the cam, as can be readily seen from FIGS. 2 and 3, wherebyk the wire 28 is stressed to conform to the con- Ifiguration of the jig 16, outer member 24 having been removed for clarity. Continued rotation of wobble plate 11 causes mandrel 23 to be rotated from point B on around to point A, and so on laying rows of wire 28 on the mandrel 23 as shown in FIG. 1. Note that the surfaces of members 22 and 24 adjacent mandrel 23 are configured so as to produce the designed configuration of the coil 27. When the wire 28 has built up on mandrel 23 to the desired height, which, for example, may be determined by the number of turns thereon, the apparatus driving shaft 10 is shut-off, the wire 2K8 cut, and the bolt 25 removed, thus allowing the elements of the jig 16 to be separated andthe coil removed from the mandrel 23 producing the end item or coil 27 as shown in FIG. 4. The coil may be then wrapped or otherwise prepared for use.

It has thus been shown that the present invention provides a forming apparatus capable of forming coils or the like, from stranded material in a born-to-shape condition, thus eliminating the additional forming procedures required by prior know methods and the inherent disadvantages thereof.

While this embodiment illustrated utilizes the spring member to drive the wobble plate, other drive arrangements could be used such as a universal joint type connection intermediate the drive shaft and the swivel member with the swivel being Xed to the wobble Iplate.

Although a particular embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, modifications will 'become apparent to those skilled in the art, and it is intended to cover in the appended claims all such modifications as come within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

What I claim is:

1. A device for forming articles in a born-to-shape condition from stranded material, or the like comprising: drive shaft means, wobble plate means pivotally mounted on said drive shaft means, means for drivingly interconnecting said drive shaft means and said wobble plate means, cam means operatively connected with and positioned on one side of said wobble plate means, cam roller means iixedly secured with respect to said cam means, means for maintaining said cam means in continuous contact with said cam roller means, and jig means operatively mounted on said wobble plate means at the side thereof opposite said cam means, said jig means being configured so as to have substantially the same general configuration as the cam surface of said cam means, whereby rotation of said wobble plate means causes associated stranded material to be wound on said jig means so as to produce a born-toshape end article.

2. The device defined in claim 1, wherein said wobble plate means is pivotally mounted on said drive shaft means through a swivel member having a spherically shaped portion and an adapter member positioned around said spherically shaped portion of said swivel member, said adapter member being operatively connected to said wobble plate means, said swivel member being operatively connected to said draft shaft means.

3. The device defined in claim 1, wherein said means for drivingly interconnecting said drive shaft means and said wobble plate means includes said cam contact maintaining means and comprises a spring means flxedly attached at one end to said wobble plate means and adjustably attached at the other end thereof to said drive shaft means.

4. The device defined in claim 3, wherein said other end of said spring means is adjustably attached to said drive shaft means through a collar means positioned around said drive shaft means and adjustable secured thereto by a movable screw type means, and other end of said spring means being xedly attached to said collar means.

5. The device defined in claim 1, wherein said jig means includes a `first member, a central mandrel, a second member, and means for securing said -rst and second members and said mandrel together, said rst member being operatively secured to said wobble plate means, said rst and second members and said central mandrel dening an area having the general configuration of the working surface of said cam means.

I6. The device defined in calim 1, wherein said first and second members and said central mandrel of said jig means defines an area such that curved electrical coils can be produced thereby upon winding of suitable associated stranded material on said jig means by rotation of said wobble plate means.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,195,859 4/1940 Gent 242-54 2,613,039 10/1952 Holcomb 242-18 2,638,943 5/1953 Bugg 14C-92.1 3,086,562 4/1963 Price 140--92-2 CHARLES W. LANHAM, Primary Examiner.

L. A. LARSON, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A DEVICE FOR FORMING ARTICLES IN A BORN-TO-SHAPE CONDITION FROM STRANDED MATERIAL OR THE LIKE COMPRISING: DRIVE SHAFT MEANS, WOBBLE PLATE MEANS PIVOTALLY MOUNTED ON SAID DRIVE SHAFT MEANS, MEANS FOR DRIVINGLY INTERCONNECTING SAID DRIVE SHAFT MEANS AND SAID WOBBLE PLATE MEANS, CAM MEANS OPERATIVELY CONNECTED WITH AND POSITIONED ON ONE SIDE OF SAID WOBBLE PLATE MEANS, CAM ROLLER MEANS FIXEDLY SECURED WITH RESPECT TO SAID CAM MEANS, MEANS FOR MAINTAINING SAID CAM MEANS IN CONTINUOUS CONTACT WITH SAID CAM ROLLER MEANS, AND JIG MEANS OPERATIVELY MOUNTED ON SAID WOBBLE PLATE MEANS AT THE SIDE THEREOF OPPOSITE SAID CAM MEANS, SAID JIG MEANS BEING CONFIGURED SO AS TO HAVE SUBSTANTIALLY THE SAME GENERAL CONFIGURATION AS THE CAM SURFACE OF SAID CAM MEANS, WHEREBY ROTATION OF SAID WOBBLE PLATE MEANS CAUSES ASSOCIATED STRANDED MATERIAL TO BE WOUND ON SAID JIG MEANS SO AS TO PRODUCE A BORN-TO-SHAPE END ARTICLE. 